STATEMENT BY MAYOR MICHAEL R. BLOOMBERG ON SENATE CONFIRMATION OF SHAUN DONOVAN AS SECRETARY OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

"Late yesterday, the United States Senate confirmed Shaun
Donovan as President Obama's Secretary of Housing and Urban
Development.

"At this moment, when so many Americans have lost their
homes, and so many more are afraid that they soon will, the country is fortunate
to have someone of Shaun's intelligence, passion and determination to lead the
Department of Housing and Urban Development. New Yorkers have been the
beneficiaries of Shaun's work for the past five years and will be for many to
come. As Commissioner of our Department of Housing
Preservation and Development, Shaun helped grow and implement our ambitious
165,000-unit New Housing Marketplace plan - the largest in the nation, designed
to provide housing affordable to 500,000 working New Yorkers. Largely due to
Shaun's stewardship, we've shown that through innovative thinking and
responsible planning government can be a stabilizing force during difficult
times - of more than 17,000 affordable home mortgages entered into through our
housing plan, we've had just five foreclosures.

"The nation faces serious housing challenges today, and I
can't think of anyone better suited to help President Obama and his
Administration meet them than Shaun."